Wednesday, July 3, 2019

Black and White Wednesday: "The Deadliest Enemy of Gotham City!" by O'Neil and Robbins

Dig it, Groove-ophiles! Ol' Groove doesn't know how he missed this gem when it hit the Interwebs back in 2016, but here ya go! While scrounging for some cool original art to share in future posts, yers trooly ran across some original Frank Robbins Batman art--from an unpublished story! Lucky Paul Handler actually owns the original pages to the whole story and was kind enough to share the pages on his Comicartfans page...which you can check out here. (I hope you're okay with my posting those pages here, Paul--hopefully we'll drives some traffic to your pages.) According to Paul, "The Deadliest Enemy of Gotham City!" (written by Denny O'Neil) was to have been part of a special anti-drug book DC was putting together with an unnamed agency back in 1974. The plan fell through, and the book, as far as we know, was never completed, but the Robbins Batman pages were. Check it out!











13 comments:

  1. I'm not a Robbins fan, but it's always interesting to see unpublished work from the Bronze Age.

    By the way, I recently learned that Eastern Color Printing ceased printing DC titles in 1973. This coincides with a subtle downturn in the richness of the hues on the covers. Another major change came in 1975 or '76 (probably another, cheaper printer was used---and I'm not even talking about the plastic flexographic plates). The late Bronze Age DC covers all had garish colours compared to the early '70s covers. Now we know why.

    Regards,
    Chris A.

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  2. I know it's off-topic, but I just saw a news blurb that Mad magazine is ceasing its newsstand sales with issue 10 of its reboot (big mistake) and going into reprint mode with subsequent issues for the direct market/comic shops. Sounds like the death knell this time.

    Gene Poole

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  3. Do you have the Neal Adams five page Superman pencils which ran in a special edition of the Amazing World of DC Comics? The story never saw print in its intended venue.

    - Neil

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    Replies
    1. Yep. https://diversionsofthegroovykind.blogspot.com/2013/03/black-and-white-wednesday-superman-vs.html

      Enjoy, Neil!

      Delete
    2. Thank you!

      - Neil

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    3. You're very welcome, Groove-ophile!

      Delete
  4. After Neal Adams so beautifully defined the dark night detective in 1970-72 Robbins' wonky, cartoonish treatment looks like it belongs in the Bizarro world. No wonder it remained unpublished.

    Gene Poole

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  5. I so disagree with you, but to each his own. One of the best things about Batman is that he's perfect for a variety of artistic interpretations. Adams, Robbins, Golden, Rogers, Newton--they all brought unique takes on the Caped Crusader that brought--and still bring-- Ol' Groove mucho enjoyment.

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  6. I'm with you 1 billion percent, Groove. I never loved Batman more than in the 1970's, mostly scripted by O'Neil and Robbins. With dynamite art by Novick, Giordano, Adams, Aparo, Rogers, and more brief art runs by the likes of Simonson, Toth, Amendola, Nasser, Buckler, Golden and others. It was amazing to me the range of art on the Batman titles, and yet how consistent the character remained across them all.

    I'm surprised this O'Neil/Robbins Batman story didn't end up in CANCELLED COMIC CAVALCADE in 1978.
    Two other long-inventoried issues of The Green Team issues 2 and 3 by Joe Simon (only a first issue actually published in FIRST ISSUE SPECIAL 2) made it into CAVALCADE, along with the inventoriedPREZ # 5 also by Simon. And SANDMAN 7 "The Seal Man's War on Santa Claus", that later saw print in a DC DIGEST around 1982, and finally just a few years ago in KIRBY OMNIBUS 2 hardcover.

    I wonder what other lost treasures remain unpublished from the 1970's.

    I have Xeroxes of two unpublished DINGBATS OF DANGER STREET issues (2 and 3) by Kirby (the only one published was in FIRST ISSUE SPECIAL 6). There's also unpublished Kirby inventory for TRUE DIVORCE CASES, and SOUL LOVE, possibly others.

    Along with, on the Marvel side, unpublished single-issue stories for THE PRISONER, one by Kirby, one by Englehart/Gil Kane. Just released in an artist's edition.

    It was great in the 1970's that DC printed several previously unpublished Golden Age stories, in DC 100-PAGE SUPER SPECTACULAR, and also as a backup series in ADVENTURE COMICS around 1974-1975.

    It's 40 years later, and we're still unearthing hidden works from that period!

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  7. I did a quick look, across 1971-1972 Frank Robbins did Batman stories and art on DETECTIVE COMICS 416, 420, 421, 426, and 429. That last one, a Man-Bat story, I particularly enjoyed.

    Robbins also illustrated some really atmospheric stories for HOUSE OF MYSTERY and other DC mystery titles across that era.

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  8. I much preferred Robbins writing to his art and Kirby's renderings to his writing.

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  9. Frank Robbins was a brilliant cartoonist, misunderstood in his time. Changing tastes put him at odds with the standards of the day. I preferred pure Robbins to the watering down he received under the inks of Colletta and Springer. His Captain America was a refreshing change from Sal Buscema after he succeeded him. He had what i consider the John Gary timing. Gary, a great singer in the Johnny Mathis mold, had the misfortune of appearing on the scene right as the Beatles were invading America along with their British compatriots. Thus his success was blunted, even though I consider him one of the greatest vocalists of all time. If Robbins had come along 20 years earlier the plaudits would have been endless.

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  10. Great post.thank you so much.Love this blog.

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Special thanks to Mike's Amazing World of Comics and Grand Comics Database for being such fantastic resources for covers, dates, creator info, etc. Thou art treasures true!


Note to "The Man": All images are presumed copyright by the respective copyright holders and are presented here as fair use under applicable laws, man! If you hold the copyright to a work I've posted and would like me to remove it, just drop me an e-mail and it's gone, baby, gone.


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